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Extracted from Malaysiakini
And the
2008 Human Rights Award goes to...
The
now-banned Hindu Right Action Force (Hindraf) and Penan activists of the Ulu Baram area in
The annual award, presented since
1999, was given to the two rights groups for their unique achievements in
highlighting concerns of their communities.
The judges were Irene
Xavier a former Internal Security Act (
Civil society
movement Hindraf was recognised for being able to "captivate, mobilise and empower vast numbers of Malaysians of Indian
origin" within a short period of its existence, said Xavier.
She said the
judges were "impressed by the way Hindraf contextualised
the current situation by bringing in colonial history and demonstrating how,
even after 50 years of Merdeka (independence), the
Indian community has continued to be marginalised and
disenfranchised".
"The
success of Hindraf can perhaps be seen in the fear it has caused the
government, to the extent that it detained five of its leaders under the
Accepting the award,
the movement’s national coordinator RS Thanenthiran (left) said it was an honour for all marginalised
communities and noted that the struggle has been recognised
for the first time.
"This
shows that the banning of Hindraf does not make any sense because the spirit
and the struggle are continuing. We the civil society... who are all fighting
for human rights have shown that a lot of changes have to be made to the
system," he said.
"You
(the government) cannot control the people with
Other
nominees that were in the running for the award were the Coalition for Clean
and Fair Election (Bersih), urban settlers of Kampung Berembang, the indigenous
community of Kampung Chang Sungai
Gepai in Bidor, Perak, and the Bar Council Human Rights Committee.
Asked why the
Bar Council and Bersih did not win the award,
"(Bersih) for instance was formed by opposition political
parties which have a lot of support and resources, unlike Hindraf which is
relatively scattered. There was no effective organising
of the community," he told reporters.
"And
when Hindraf came into being, it managed to capture the imagination of a marginalised community and empower them to confront, to
assert and to claim their rights."
'Long,
lonely Penan struggle'
The Penan
activists won the award for having struggled for more than two decades against encroachment
into land over which they claim native customary rights.
"The
violations faced by the Penans are extreme and
sometimes violent. They faced threats, killing, rapes, disappearance and
hardship in their daily survival," noted Xavier.
"They
have struggled against very powerful forces representing the collusion of
political powers, business, police, military, timber companies and oil palm
plantations."
She referred
in particular to Long Kerong village headman and
pioneer activist TK Kelesau Naan
who went missing in October last year. His
skeletal remains were found two months after his disappearance. It has been
alleged that Kelesau was murdered by agents of
loggers.
His nephew, TK Tirong Lawing (left), 60, the current headman of Long Kerong, accepted the award. Also present was Tirong’s son Nick Kelesau, 43.
"The
kind of deprivations they face is also very serious because land means
everything to the indigenous people," he said.
The award
comprises a trophy, a certificate and prize money of RM1,000.
Suaram also
launched its 2008 Human Rights Report in conjunction with the World Human
Rights Day, observed on Dec 10 each year.
Some key
trends highlighted in the report were the major losses suffered by the Barisan Nasional in the previous
general election; abuse of police powers; discrimination; and obstacles to
freedom of assembly and association.
